E-Newsletter: Vol. 2

E-Newsletter: Vol. 2The INWEPF session at the International Conference on Water for Food and Ecosystems

The International Conference on Water for Food and Ecosystems organized by the FAO and the Netherlands will be held from 31 January to 5 February 2005 in Hague, the Netherlands.

The objective of the conference is to identify and discuss the concrete progress being made in the implementation of sustainable water management for food and ecosystem.

The INWEPF will organize a special session as a side event of the conference. The INWEPF session, titled "Water Governance for Holistic Values of Multi-Functional Paddy Agriculture". This session will feature unique attributes of paddy water management established in long history of rice cultivation in monsoon Asia. This will offer an excellent opportunity to discuss the importance of accounting multiple services and values of paddy farming in terms of socio-economic and environmental functions. This session also raise issue on how to keep and enhance the sustainability of the functions through "social capital" building and cooperative governance arrangements.

From the INWEPF community, two researchers will make presentations. Draft of presentations can be obtained from the INWEPF website.

The World Conference on Disaster Reduction concluded with countries pledging to reduce risks of natural disasters. At the closing session of the world conference, "Hyogo Framework for Action: 2005-2015" was adopted.

In session 4.10, disaster prevention functions in rural areas and disaster resistant sustainable livelihoods were highlighted. As a result, the importance of multifunctionality of agriculture, rural communities and the needs for conservation measures by means of sustainable development of agriculture devised for these functions were affirmed.